Time setting mechanism in watch



Oct. 6, 1964 AKIRA TSUZUKI 3,

TIME SETTING MECHANISM IN WATCH Filed Nov. 50, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 |I Hum-lung 2mm ifi Wilflk; INVENTOR 54 a AKuzA TsuzuKl BY Qt, MM

Oct- 6, 1 6 AKIRA fsuzuKl 3,151,441

TIME SETTING MECHANISM IN WATCH Filed Nov. 50, 1962 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 I I I6 INVENTOR. AKIEA TSUZ U K! United States Patent 3,151,441 TIME SETTING MECHANISM IN WATCH Akira Tsuzuki, 30 Oiwake-cho, Khomagome, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan Filed Nov. 30, 1962, Ser. No. 241,355 Claims. (Cl. 5885.5)

This invention relates to a time setting mechanism operable by means of the stern of a watch.

As commonly known, it is possible to set the minute and hour hands of a watch by rotating the conventional stem of a watch to a desired time point, after first pulling the stem outwards from its normal position. However previously this time setting manipulation could not be used to adjust the second hand.

In the past it has been proposed to fit stop means to the watch for bringing the second hand into a rest position while the time setting manipulation proceeds. Therefore in the prior art it was possible to bring the second hand to a dead stop, but it was impossible to adjust the second hand to a desired correct position.

The main object of the invention is to provide a novel mechanism allowing the setting of the second hand when the stem is conventionally manipulated for the purpose of adjusting of the minute and hour hands.

It is another object of the invention to provide a unique mechanism as above referred to, which can be obtained upon making some slight modification upon the conventional time setting mechanism.

It is still another object of the invention to provide a novel mechanism of the type as above referred to, which operates most accurately and may be readily massproduced at low cost.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic for the invention are set forth in the appended claims. The invention itself, however, both as to its construction and its modes of operation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, will be best understood from the following description of a prepared specific embodiment when read in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a sectional elevation of the time setting mechanism, according to the present invention, illustrating the relative position of main constituent parts thereof, when the stem shaft has been pushed-in to its full degree and kept in its normal position;

FIG. 1a is a perspective view of a click spring employed in the mechanism;

FIG. 2 is a similar view to FIG. 1, wherein, however, the stem shaft has been pulled out to a first operating step, which allows a manual time setting of the secondhand according to the novel feature ofthe present invention;

FIG. 3 is a similar view to FIG. 2, wherein the stern shaft has been adjusted to a second operating step, allow ing thereby a manual time setting of the minute hand as is conventional;

FIG. 4 is a fragmental enlarged perspective View illustrating of a device adapted to cut-01f the operating relation between the wheel train of the watch mechanism and the pawls driving it, said device being shown in its position when the stern shaft has been fully pushed-in; and

FIG. 5 is a similar view to FIG. 4, wherein however the stem shaft has been shifted to its said first operating stage.

Referring now to the drawings, 11 denotes a stem shaft which is slidably and turnably mounted in a mounting plate 14, the latter being rigidly supported in the frame work of a watch, whichis not shown. The lower end of stem portion ll is formed into a square shaft 34, upon which a first time adjusting wheel 13 is slidably, yet nonrotatably mounted. A frame plate 12 constitutes a part 3,151,441 Patented Oct. 6, 1964 "ice of the above mentioned frame work and is formed with an opening which slidingly receives the hollow stern of a wheel 13 that is adapted to cooperate with a minute hand wheel 20 turnably mounted on plate 12, as shown. The upper end of stem shaft 11 passes through a back cover 15 of the watch, and a stem 16 is fixed on the extreme end of the shaft 11 by means of a screw 16a and a collar 1612 as shown. An intermediate portion of stem shaft 11 is formed into another square portion 33. Mounted slidably, yet non-turnably on this second square portion is a second time adjusting wheel 17, which is adapted to cooperate with second hand wheel 19. A U-shaped click spring 18, the whole configuration of which is shown in FIG. 1a, is fixedly mounted on the bottom surface of mounting plate 14 and resiliently embraces the stem shaft from the both sides thereof. The shaft is formed with three circular grooves 35, 35a and 35b (FIGS. 4 and 5) for selective cooperation with click spring 18 so that the shaft may be positioned anyone of three separate steps by manipulating the stem 16 so as to shift the shaft vertically to the desired degree. A coil spring 21 is in compression between wheel 17 and a washer 22, which abuts upon the upper surface of the adjusting wheel 13 so as to urge the wheel 17 upwards and the first adjusting wheel 13 downwards through the intermediary of the washer. Thus, wheel 17 is resiliently urged against a flange 23 formed at an intermediate position below the lowest groove 35b on the stem shaft, and washer 22 normally abuts resiliently against the upper surface of frame plate 12.

A spring strip 24 is fixed at its one end on the lower surface of the frame plate 12 by means of a setscrew 24a, While the free end of the strip is kept in pressure engagement with the lower end surface of the first adjusting wheel 13 and thus urges the latter upwards. The strength of the spring strip 24 is selected to be substantially weaker than that of coil spring 21 so that wheel 13 is normally kept at its uppermost end in pressure engagement wtih the lower surface of washer 22, yet unable to force the latter upwards from the upper surface of frame plate 12.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, a bellorank lever 25 is pivotally supported by means of a pivot 26 on the mounting plate 14, which is not shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, and one of the both arms of said lever, being denoted by 25a, is kept in pressure contact with a cam 28 formed on stem shaft 11 under the influence of a U-shaped spring 27, which is fixedly attached by means of a fixing screw 27a to the mounting plate 14. The extreme end of the other arm 25b of the bellcrank extends to a point in the neighborhood of a couple of elongated leaf springs 30a and 30b which have feeding pawls 31a and 31b, respectively mounted on their free ends. These leaf springs are fixedly attached to separate vibrators, which are made advantageously so as to form electromagnetically driven members specifically disclosed in the copending application Serial No. 241,351 filed November 20, 1962. Reference shall be had therefore to that copending application for the detailed construction of these vibrators, if necessary. A pair of depending pins 25c and 25d extend downwards from the lower surface of second arm of bellcrank 25 in the neighborhood of feed springs 30a and 30b, respectively, and are slightly separated therefrom, when the stem is in its normal or non-operative position shown in FIG. 1.

However, when the stem shaft is drawn out for time adjustment, the extreme end of the arm 25a will slide along the inclined surface of came 28 to peripheral edge thereof as shown in FIG. 5, and the arm is thereby caused to turn counter-clockwise against the action of spring 27, resulting in the disengagement of feeding pawls 31a and 31b from rachet 32 under the influence of urging force exerted from depending pins c and 25d upon the corresponding resilient strips 39a and 39b.

When the stem 16 is pushed back into the position shown in FIGURE 4 the bellcrank 25 will return to its normal position, shown in FIG. 4, under the influence of spring force 27 and the feeding pawls are thus brought again in meshing with ratchet teeth 32.

The operation of the whole mechanism will not be described in detail:

As hereinbefore described, stem 16 is shown in FIG. 1 in its normal position with its shaft 11 fully pushed-in position, which means that the watch (not shown) operates under its regular operating condition. In this case, the second adjusting wheel 17 for the second hand (not shown) is disengaged from the second hand drive wheel 19, which is also a member of the gear train of the watch. In addition, the first adjusting wheel 13 is disengaged from the minute wheel 20, which wheel serves to transmit motion from minute hand 40 to hour hand 41 in a predetermined reduced ratio as in the conventional manner. Therefore, with the stem in this position the time setting mechanism is operatively disconnected from the watch gear train, of which a small portion of the wheels are shown in FIG. 5. Thus, no operating loss is encountered during the normal running of the watch, even though the time setting mechanism so far described is provided. Further, bellcrank lever 25 is positioned as shown in FIG. 4, so that pins 25c and 25d are separated from the feeding strips a and 30b so as to allow the pawls to engage with rachet 32. Therefore, oscillating motion is transmitted from the oscillators through the intermediary of the feeding strips to pawls 31a and 311), respectively, in a cyclic and alternate manner as described in the aforementioned copending application. This intermittently turns the rachet 3'2, and through the gear train the minute hand and the hour hand 41, for the clock.

For the purpose of adjusting the position of the second hand, stem 16 together with its shaft is drawn upwards to bring the latter into its first adjusting stage as shown in FIG. 2. In this case, click spring 18 is shifted from the first groove 35 over collar 60 to the second or middle groove 35a and kept in resilient engagement therewith, thereby so that the stern shaft is accurately positioned in a first predetermined position. Since second adjusting wheel 17 is kept in resiliently abutting relation against the lower surface of flange 23 integral with the stem shaft, the upward movement of the latter will bring the wheel 17 with it into a meshing condition with third wheel 19, which is also a member of the gear train and supported by means of its shaft turnably mounted in both plates 12 and 14. If such a desired meshing condition should not be realized on account of an occasionally encountered interference caused by a non-registering condition between the wheels 17 and 19, a slight turning movement of the stem would automatically bring the desired meshing into effect. It will be clear from the foregoing that the intentional pulling effort exerted upon the stem in the aforementioned manner cannot affect in any way upon the pressure engagement of the said both wheels, since the pressure engagement is due to the resilient action of spring 21, so that there is no problem of damaging of the third wheel during the course of the present time adjusting manipulation.

Simultaneously with the engagement between the said both wheels, the follower end 2511 of the bellcrank is actuated by cam 28 in the manner asreferred to hereinbefore so as to pivot a some angle counter-clockwise in FIG. 4 and release pins 25c so that 25d on the opposite arm of the bellcrank will urge the feeding strips to separate from their operating position. In this way, the feeding pawls are disengaged from the ratchet, so that the gear train including the third wheel is isolated from the vibrator. When the stem is manually turned, under these conditions, in one or the other direction, the whole 4. gear train is caused to turn correspondingly through the intermediary of the two meshing wheels 17 and 19, yet without any fear of possible damage of rachet teeth as well as feeding pawls. In this way, a possible daily time lag or lead which will amount to two or three minutes at the highest may be adjustingly corrected.

When a watch is worn for the first time, or when a traveler wishes to set his watch to a local standard time, an appreciable time adjustment may be required in which it will be necessary that the minute hand, and the hour hand, be rotated manually and consider-ably. For this purpose, the stem shaft is further pulled out to a second adjusting step, as shown in FIG. 3. In this case, click spring 18 is further shifted from the second groove 35a over second collar 61 to the third groove 35b and kept in resilient engagement therewith, so as to accurately position the stem shaft into its second adjusting stage. Since the second adjusting wheel 17 is also kept in pressure engagement with flange 23 in this case, the upward movement of stem shaft 11 will be accompanied by the corresponding movement of wheel 17 under the influence of spring action 21, thus the Wheel being shifted from the position shown in FIG. 2 to that illustrated in FIG. 3. As shown, the width of second adjusting wheel is large enough to keep its engagement with the third wheel 19 even upon the present second stage adjustment.

Also, washer 22 is lifted by pressure exerted thereupon by the uppermost surface of lower square shaft 34, during the above mentioned pulling operation, so that the spring. force of spring 21 will be taken off the first adjusting wheel 13. Thus the latter is lifted under the influence of spring strip 24 and brought into engagement with a conventional hour wheel 20. turnably mounted in frame plate 12. Upon the upward shifting of the stem shaft, the follower end 25a of the bellcrank is kept in pressure engagement with the cam 28 as shown in FIGS. 3 and 5, and therefore, the drive pawls 31a and 31b are again kept disengaged from ratchet teeth 32. Should, a tooth on first adjusting wheel 13 be brought into collisionagainst one of the teeth on hour wheel 20 so that the desired mating condition cannot be realized, turn-ing the stem 16 slightly will elevate the problem. Then, the both wheels can be brought into mesh automatically with each other in the similar way as described hereinbefore in connection with the first stage adjustment. No fear is encountered in damaging of hour wheel 2%], because the manual pulling effort to elevate stem shaft 11 is not exerted directly on wheel 13, but only through the action of relative-1y weak spring 24, so that any strong collision between the both wheels 13 and 29 can be effectively avoided. When the stem is turned in one direction or another under these conditions, the hour wheel 20 is turned, through the intermediary of shaft 11 and third wheel 19, so that the desired time setting for the minute hand can be realized. It will be clear in this case that motion is transmitted to both the minute hand from first adjusting wheel 13 and the second hand from second adjusting wheel 17. As commonly known to those skilled in the art, a high gear ratio exists between movement of the minute wheel and that of the second hand. Thus, when the minute hand is rotated a considerable angle within a very short period, as in the case of the present, second kind of adjusting manipulation, the said both hands are kept in cooperating condition, provided that no brake means and no slip means are provided. In the present mechanism, the stem shaft is also kept in driving relation with the second hand, so that the second wheel 17 will act as an effective brake means to prevent such a high revolution of the second hand under the influence of the quick turning motion of the minute hand. Slipping means in the meaning of the above sense is provided by a conventional slipping engagement between a canon pinion 52 carrying minute hand 40, and the shaft 51 of second wheel 50. By this means, the above-mentioned undesirous high speed rotation of the second hand may be positively prevented. The shipping connection between canon pinion 52 and second wheel shaft 51 may provide a considerable frictional resistance depending upon the manufacturing condition. But, such a large frictional resistance, even when it should exist, does not provide interference in the operation of the present time setting mechanism. Under the above-mentioned adjusting condition, the rotational speed ratio between the stem and the minute hand is substantially same as in the conventional watch, so that the desired adjustment of the minute hand can be easily carried into effect.

Upon completion of the said first or second kind of time setting operation, the stem is again pushed-in as far as it goes and, the operating constituents of the present mechanism are brought into their original position shown in FIG. 1 through that shown in FIG. 2. Thus, drive pawls 36a and 30b are brought again into resilient engagernent with ratchet wheel 32, so that the watch mechanism will rest-art.

In the foregoing description, the invention has been explained as applied to an electromechanical watch having timepieces formed in the shape of vibrators, such as electr-omagnets, tunning forks, crystals or the like. It will however be easily appreciated that a person skilled in the art can readily apply the gist of the present invention to classically conventional purely mechanical watches by making minor changes in the above-described embodiment upon reading the foregoing description.

Without further detail description, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist of the present invention that those skilled in the art can, by applying current knowledge, readily adapt it for various other applications without omitting features that, from the stand point of prior art, fairly constitute essential characteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this invention, and therefore, such adaptations should be intended to be comprehended within the meaning and range of equivalence of the following claims.

What is claimed as new and desired to be secured by Letters Patent is:

1. In a timepiece which has a second, minute and hour hand, drive means, and a series of wheels for transferring motion from the drive means to each of these bands, an improved adjuster comprising a stem, a rotatable shaft movable into a first, second and third position along its axis, said shaft being fixed at one end to the stem so that it may be rotated by the stem and can be positioned by the stem into the three mentioned positions, a first wheel mounted on the shaft which when the shaft is positioned in first position is in cooperation with a wheel in said series of wheels which drives the minute hand, a sec- 0nd wheel mounted on the shaft which when the shaft is positioned in said first and second positions is in cooperation with a wheel in said series of wheels which drives the second hand, cam means on said shaft, lever means which is actuated by said cam means to disengage said drive means from said series of wheels when the shaft is in said first and second positions.

2. In a timepiece which has a second, minute and hour hand, drive means, and a series of wheels for transferring motion from the drive means to each of these hands, an improved adjuster comprising a stem, a rotatable shaft movable into a first, second, and third position along its axis and being provided with a stop at some point along its length, said shaft being fixed at one end to the stem so that it can be rotated by the stem and can be positioned by the stern into the three mentioned positions, a first wheel mounted slidably on said shaft for'rotation therewith, a second wheel mounted slidably in said shaft for rotation therewith between the first wheel and the stop on said shaft, a first spring means which urges said first wheel towards said stern and when the shaft is positioned in said first position urges said first wheel into cooperation with a Wheel in said series of wheels which drives the minute hand, a second spring means which urges said second wheel against said stop on said shaft and when the shaft is positioned in said first and second position urges said wheel into cooperation with a wheel in said series of wheels which drives the second hand, cam means on said shaft, lever means which is actuated by said cam means to disengage said drive means from said series of Wheels when the shaft is in said first and second positions and to engage said drive means with said series of wheels when the shaft is in said third position.

3. Time adjuster as set forth in claim 1, said drive means comprising two spring pawls separately driven from a vibrator and cooperating with a ratchet operatively connected with series of wheels.

4. Time adjuster as set forth in claim 3, wherein said lever means is a bellcrank, of which one arm cooperates with said cam and another arm carries two separate pins, the latter being adapted to cooperate with said spring pawls so as to separate them from the mating ratchet in said first and second positions of said shaft.

5. Time adjuster as set forth in claim 1, wherein a click spring is provided for positively and selectively positi0ning said stem shaft at any of said three positions.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,199,017 Whitehead et a1 Apr. 30, 1940 UNITED STATES OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No, 3,151,441 7 October 6, 1964 Akira Tsuzuki It is hereby certified that error appears in the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

In the grant, lines 1 to 3, for "Akira Tsuzuki, of Khomagome, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan," read Akira Tsuzuki, of Tokyo, Japan, assignor to Citizen Tokei Kabushiki Kaisha, of Tokyo, Japan, a corporation of Japan, line 12, for "Akira Tsuzuki, his heirs" read Citizen Tokei Kabushiki. Kaisha, its successors in the heading to the printed specification, lines 3 and 4, for "-Akira Tsuzuki, 3O Oiwakecho, Khomagome, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan" read Akira Tsuzuki, Tokyo, Japan, assignor to Citizen Tokei Kabushiki Kaisha, Tokyo, Japan, a corporation of Japan column 1, line 70, for "portion 11 is formed into a square shaft 34" read shaft 11 is formed into a square portion 34 column 2, line 68, for "came" read cam column 3, line 8, for "not" read now line 44, strike out "thereby"; line 68, for "a" read 25a at same column 3, line 69, for "and release pins 25c so that 25d" read so that release pins 25c and 25d Signed and sealed this 20th day of April 1965.

(SEAL) Attest:

ERNEST W. SWIDER EDWARD J. BRENNER Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION Patent No, 3,151,441 October 6, 1964 Akira Ts uzuki It is hereby certified that error appears in the above numbered patent requiring correction and that the said Letters Patent should read as corrected below.

In the grant, lines 1 to 3, for ".Akira Tsuzuki, of Khomagome, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan," read Akira-Tsuzuki, of Tokyo, Japan, assignor to Citizen Tokei Kabushiki Kaisha, of Tokyo, Japan, a corporation of Japan, line 12, for "Akira Tsuzuki, his heirs" read Citizen T-okei Kabushiki. Kaisha, its successors in the heading to' the printed specification, lines 3 and 4, for "Akira Tsuzuki, 3O Oiwakecho, Khomagome, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo, Japan" read Akira Tsuzuki, Tokyo, Japan, assignor to Citizen Tokei Kabushiki Kaisha, Tokyo, Japan, a corporation -of Japan column 1, line 70, for "portion 11 is formed into a square shaft 34" read shaft 11 is formed into a square portion 34 column 2, line 68, for "came" read cam column 3, line 8, for "not" read now line 44, strike out "thereby"; line 68, for "a" read 25a at same column 3, line 69, for and release pins 250 so that 25d" read so that release pins 250 and 25d Signed and sealed this 20th day of April 1965.

(SEAL) Attest:

ERNEST W. SWIDER EDWARD J. BRENNER Attesting Officer Commissioner of Patents 

1. IN A TIMEPIECE WHICH HAS A SECOND, MINUTE AND HOUR HAND, DRIVE MEANS, AND A SERIES OF WHEELS FOR TRANSFERRING MOTION FROM THE DRIVE MEANS TO EACH OF THESE HANDS, AN IMPROVED ADJUSTER COMPRISING A STEM, A ROTATABLE SHAFT MOVABLE INTO A FIRST, SECOND AND THIRD POSITION ALONG ITS AXIS, SAID SHAFT BEING FIXED AT ONE END TO THE STEM SO THAT IT MAY BE ROTATED BY THE STEM AND CAN BE POSITIONED BY THE STEM INTO THE THREE MENTIONED POSITIONS, A FIRST WHEEL MOUNTED ON THE SHAFT WHICH WHEN THE SHAFT IS POSITIONED IN FIRST POSITION IS IN COOPERATION WITH A WHEEL IN SAID SERIES OF WHEELS WHICH DRIVES THE MINUTE HAND, A SECOND WHEEL MOUNTED ON THE SHAFT WHICH WHEN THE SHAFT IS POSITIONED IN SAID FIRST AND SECOND POSITIONS IS IN COOPERATION WITH A WHEEL IN SAID SERIES OF WHEELS WHICH DRIVES THE SECOND HAND, CAM MEANS ON SAID SHAFT, LEVER MEANS WHICH IS ACTUATED BY SAID CAM MEANS TO DISENGAGE SAID DRIVE MEANS FROM SAID SERIES OF WHEELS WHEN THE SHAFT IS IN SAID FIRST AND SECOND POSITIONS. 